"Too Little... Too Late"

PLANS & PLANNING

A safety valve for some of the businessmen, economists, laborites at work on U.S. defense in Washington is the National Planning Association. More of a seminar than an association, NPA gives such men as OPM's Deputy Production Director William L. Batt, Labor Bureau Statistician and Machine-Tool Expert A. Ford Hinrichs, the Federal Reserve Board's (and Harvard's) Alvin Hansen a chance to get together, pool ideas. Published last week was a caustic NPA summary of what was talked about and concluded at a recent session.

> "It is still commonly believed that this country is making a magnificent defense effort in accordance with a carefully conceived defense program. . . . However . . . the effort is not nearly strenuous enough and ... the program is not at all clear and well developed. Behind the talk of billions for defense lies the plain and simple fact that funds appropriated lag behind our needs for military materials, and that production lags behind the appropriations. It is urgent that we see more clearly . . . move more rapidly and decisively. . . ." > "It would seem clear that the way to defeat an enemy is to gain a superiority in arms and equipment over him. The fact is that the Army and Navy have not yet said what this country needs if it is to attain that superiority. . . . The Army has consistently said that it could not plan for what equipment it might need because it does not know where or whom it may have to fight. ... In the world of today . . . the Army certainly knows who our potential enemies are [and] should know reasonably well what equipment those enemies have and where it is. This certainly provides a sufficient basis for determining many of the military items that must be produced if superiority is to be attained."--* > "The 0PM must do more advance planning to accelerate production. . . . It still clings to the belief that it will have done its task if the contracts let are fulfilled according to the time schedule originally established. . . . We now have ample evidence that the present method . . . results in too little production too late. . . ." > NPA's last point was in effect a jab at Franklin Roosevelt, who up to this week had yet to clarify and centralize defense responsibility: "The best of intentions will come to nought if it is not clear who is to plan and for what things, and who is to execute."

Mr. Batt hastened to explain that what he might say or hear at NPA bullfests had no connection with what he did at his OPM desk.

* Army men have lately speeded up their calculation of requirements.

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